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Meet our Postdoc and Fellows Champion 

We’re delighted to introduce and as the Postdoc and Fellows Champions for the Department of Infectious Disease.

Alex, Aileen and Tom are dedicated to supporting our Postdocs and Fellows, helping to address their unique challenges and ensuring their needs are met. They work closely with our Postdoc Representatives and the Early Career Researcher Institute to offer a range of support, including:

• Career development 

• Community building 

• Wellbeing support and more 

For details on the types of activities they can assist with and to learn more about their roles, please visit the ECRI website.

Postdocs and Fellows in the Department of Infectious Disease are encouraged to reach out to Alex via email a.mccarthy@imperial.ac.uk, Aileen via email a.rowan@imperial.ac.uk and Tom via email t.parks@imperial.ac.uk.

Meet our Postdoc and Fellow Representatives

Our Postdoc and Fellows Representatives for the Department of Infectious Disease. The representative are key keeping the DoID and ECR Institute informed about the needs of Postdocs and Fellows. Through their commitment and creativity, they plan social and training opportunities within the Department.

The Postdoc and Fellows Representatives can be contacted at doidpostdoc-reps@imperial.ac.uk

DoID Postdoctoral & Fellow Symposium 2025

On Friday 14th November at White City, we held our DoID Postdoc & Fellow Symposium.  There were research talks from postdocs and fellows, and perspectives on career progression from Wendy Barclay, Rachel Lai and Daniel Gonçalves Carneiro. We also had career roundtables, a team quiz, and networking.

Congratulations to Anna Rydlova and Molly George for their Best Talk prizes.

Thank you to DoID and ECR Institute for funding the event.

Read more about the DoID Postdoc & Fellow Symposium at our blog .

David Carreno · Claire Dunican · Hannah Klim · Maria Papangelli · Katia Ribeiro de Jesus · Magda Szczesna · Alex McCarthy (with support from DoID and ECRI)

DoID Ignite Awards

We are delighted to announce that DoID Ignite Awards will offer £1000 for Postdocs & Fellows to explore their own new ideas. This award will provide a valuable resource to help you gather preliminary data or develop a new project, ultimately strengthening a future project or fellowship/grant application.

Awardees will also have a unique opportunity for professional development, as they'll gain leadership and supervisory experience by mentoring a master's student on their project.

Congratulations to Jorin Riexinger and Magda Szczesna for their Ignite Awards.

DoID Grant Writing Workshop

On Thursday April 16th, the Department of Infectious Disease hosted a Securing Research Funding Workshop for Postdocs & Fellows planning to apply for fellowships or grants in the near future. The event, organised by Postdoc & Fellow Champion Alex McCarthy and Research Manager Dr Celia Monteiro Domingues, offered attendees the opportunity to hear from Departmental researchers about their experience in writing, submitting and securing grant applications across different career stages. The event was designed with input from and co-chaired by our DoID Postdoc and Fellow Representatives Claire Dunican, Hannah Klim, Katia Ribeiro de Jesus, Magda Szczesna and David Carreno Yugueros. The workshop also highlighted the support available to attendees within the Department and at Imperial.

In the morning session, Dr Laura Martin-Sancho gave excellent advice on how to develop grant ideas and to write the proposal. Afterwards, Dr Vanessa Sancho-Shimizu gave an excellent insight into good practice in approaching other aspects of grant proposals. Dr Carol Sheppard looked back on her academic journey and shared her key experiences. Ramesh Wigneshweraraj provided an update on MRC submissions. Avinash Shenoy gave excellent practical advice on how to deal with reviewers’ comments on grant submissions.

In the afternoon, ECRs had the opportunity to participate in small table discussions focused on specific funders or schemes, chaired by an Imperial board member who sits on the funder decision committee. This included BBSRC, MRC, NIHR, Wellcome Trust and ICRF. The event was closed with beer/wine and pizza for colleagues in the Department.

For grant application support, please contact Dr Celia Domingues (c.domingues@imperial.ac.uk), Research Manager for the Department of Infectious Disease and Brain Sciences.

DoID ECR Club

The DoID ECR (Early Career Researcher) Club is a dynamic forum for postdocs, fellows, research technicians, and PhD ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ in DoID to foster a supportive community and enhance professional development. We hold monthly meetings on a range of topics pertinent to scientific careers and network over food and drinks. The ECR Club is driven by its members, ensuring that the activities and discussions are relevant to the needs and interests of ECRs.  

More information can be found on our webpage here.  

DoID Welcome Pack

The DoID provides a comprehensive Welcome Pack for all new starters, including postdocs and fellows. This pack is designed to be a resource that helps you to grips with department life and settle into your new role.

You can download the pack here - DoID Induction Document - August 2025.

DoID People & Culture Committee

The DoID People and Culture Committee is dedicated to creating a supportive, inclusive, and diverse research community. The committee's work is guided by the principles of EDI, with a broad remit to support all staff and ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½. The People and Culture Committee includes members who are postdocs and fellows, ensuring that the perspectives and concerns are directly represented.

More information can be found on our webpage here.